Keeper of the Stars
by leobrat
Summary: What if Will was not Elizabeth's true love, but only meant to watch over her until she found him? What if Jack did not come into Port Royal by accident? (JE)
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer:  I don't own any of the characters from Pirates of the Caribbean (they belong to Disney), and I don't own any of the characters from any historical reference I may or may not use (they belong to themselves).  I also do not have any affiliation with any people involved in the making of the Pirates of the Caribbean.  Basically, I own nothing.

Author's note:  In the beginning, it basically follows the movie chronologically, but it will of course stray, because I am a HUGE Jack/Elizabeth shipper, and I will stray as much as I have to make their connection feasible, and of course make everything okay with Will (don't worry, I love Orly, too). 

_1712, Somewhere in the Spanish Main_           

"Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me."  Ten-year-old Elizabeth Swann sang softly to herself, peering out into the eerie mist surrounding the Navy ship that had carried her from her home in London to these strange and warm waters on the way to her new home in Port Royal, Jamaica.  The soft green of the water she had encountered since they'd entered the territory of this warm climate had captured Elizabeth's heart, but now she felt as though she was sailing through a ghost story.  Adventurous little girl that she was, she dared herself to sing louder.  "We pillage, we plunder, we steal, we thieve, drink up me hearties, yo ho-" and she ended with such a blood-curdling scream when her new step-brother, Will Turner, fourteen, snuck up behind her to startle the life out of her.

When she turned around, he was laughing at her.  "I scared you!"  

"Did not!"  She swung at him, laughing too now, as she began to chase him around the lower deck.  Of course, she would have been no more petrified if Blackbeard himself had snuck up behind her, but she could never admit that to him.

Will Turner had been her step-brother for only six months, but he had already grown to be her best friend.  His mother had worked as his father's maid for a year, but the Governor could help himself falling in love with her, and they had married right before the decision to go to Jamaica was made.  Elizabeth and Will had been shy at first with each other, but when Elizabeth realized that she had a friend now who wouldn't insist on playing tea party or cotillion, and Will realized that he was now someone's hero (a new feeling for a poor boy from Manchester), they got along splendidly and seldom were they parted.  

Well, _sometimes_ they got along splendidly.  Other times, they were at each other's throats, since one of their favorite games to play was pirates, and also because two such strong wills are bound to almost never agree with one another.

Which was the case in this situation, and as most of the crew members chose to ignore the monotonous shouts of 'I scared you!' and 'Did not!', Mr. Gibbs, the master gunner, did not.

He sent both children into another screaming fit as he grabbed both by the scruff of their necks, paying no mind to the fine broadcloth of Elizabeth's dress, and scolded the both of them.  "Quiet, ye hear!  These are strange and silent waters, mired with fog!  They say cursed pirates sail these waters.  Ye don't want to be bringing them down upon us, do ye now?"  He turned his full attention on Elizabeth.  "And don't think I didn't hear ye singing yer pirate song 'afore.  Bad luck to be singin' 'bout pirates round this way."

"Mr. Gibbs, that will be enough," all three turned to see Lt. Norrington address his crewman rather firmly.  Close behind him were Governor Swann, and his new wife, Lydia Turner-Swann.  The new Mrs. Swann, though considerably younger than her husband, and beautiful like her boy, always had a sadness in her eyes, that was present even on her wedding day.  But she was a kind and soft-spoken woman, and having lived most of her life as a peasant and working girl, appreciated all that her new life had to offer and especially what it offered to her son.  Elizabeth adored her.

Mr. Gibbs sighed.  "Aye, lieutenant," head down, he crossed both parties muttering to himself about, "Bad luck to have women on board too, even if one is miniature.  Why, I tell ye…"

Elizabeth tugged on the coatsleeve of the lieutenant.  "He said there were pirates in this sea.  Do you think he could be right?"

The Governor began to scold her for her unladylike behavior, but Lt. Norrington gave a quick and not altogether kind smile down to the child's innocent face.  He was a quick and not altogether kind man, but rather ambitious and a good seaman.  The Governor himself had picked him to oversee his family's voyage across the Atlantic.  "I suppose he could be, Miss Swann."

"I should like to meet a pirate," the comment was meant to be under her breath, but Elizabeth felt her cheeks go red as her father and the lieutenant chuckled at her childlike wonder.

"Don't be too eager to meet a pirate, Miss Swann," Lt. Norrington stared out to sea, and Elizabeth wasn't sure if he was even addressing her still.  "A violent lot they are.  In our new colony of Port Royal, I intend to see that all thieves, murderers, and yes, Miss Swann, all pirates get exactly what they deserve: a short drop and a sudden stop."

Elizabeth gasped at the imagery it created, though not exactly scared, but Governor Swann immediately stepped in.  "Lt. Norrington, I fear what kind of effect this talk will have upon my daughter."

"My apologies, Sir.  Miss Swann, Mrs. Swann."  And Norrington went back about his business in a clearly unapologetic way.

"Elizabeth, you really must stop this foolishness with piracy.  It really is a crime, you know, and a violent one at that.  Wouldn't you like to go into your cabin with Lydia and practice your embroidery until it's time for tea?"  His words were meant to be kind, but when Elizabeth received such suggestions from her father, she felt as though he'd used his riding crop on her.  Practicing embroidery made her want to scream.  

Lydia laid a kind hand on Elizabeth's shoulders, and while the Governor wasn't looking, Will stuck his tongue out at her, making his step-sister laugh.  Elizabeth had just gotten below deck, when Elizabeth was pitched off her feet.  Sitting up and rubbing the bump on her head, she looked up at Lydia.  "What's happened?"  And then the unmistakable sound of canons erupted, and the woman and little girl looked at each other in fear.  

"Elizabeth, get to our cabin, and stay there!"  And Lydia was in a flash up the stairs again, only she seemed to have forgotten that her step-daughter rarely obeyed anyone, especially if anything exciting going on.  And to Elizabeth, at that stage in her life, if she heard canons and guns firing, there was excitement to be found.

Creeping up on deck a minute after Lydia, Elizabeth began to wander, and was scared instantly.  She was without her father, without Lydia, and without Will.  And there were men being shot, men shooting, and Elizabeth saw her first taste of death as Tom Porter, a young sailor only a few years older than Will, fell, with a shot to his chest and coughing up awful spurts of blood.

Elizabeth was doing her best to not curl up on the deck and burst into tears when she saw Lydia and ran up to her, grabbing her hand and squeezing for support.  Lydia looked down at Elizabeth, her eyes wild, with both a courage and a fear Elizabeth had never seen the likes of before and wouldn't again for a very long time.  "Elizabeth, I told you to go down below!"

"I want to stay with you!" Elizabeth trailed after Lydia, having the misfortune of being a little girl who had always gotten what she wanted, and was petted and spoiled, and was being jerked awake to the harshness of reality.

"I have to find Will!"  And as Lydia took one more fateful step, she stepped in front of Elizabeth, and fell.  Elizabeth had heard the telltale pop, and the red staining the wood on Lydia's left side.  Elizabeth finally did crumple to the floor in tears, cradling the head of the only mother she had ever known.  She screamed as Lydia coughed up the bubbles of blood Elizabeth had seen only seconds earlier from young Tom Porter.

"Lydia! No!"  But Lydia was shaking, and was no longer hearing Elizabeth.  Then, with one final bout of strength, reached below the collar of her dress and ripped off the chain she wore around her neck, pressing it and the medallion it held into Elizabeth's palm.  "Keep this, Elizabeth," Lydia managed to get out in her weak, dying voice.  "Don't ever let anyone know you have it.  Even Will.  Especially Will.  He can never know…"  and then Lydia Turner-Swann was gone, as the battle came to a close, with His Majesty's Navy taking the victory.  Elizabeth wept, as she kissed Lydia's palm, and closed her eyes.

"Mother!"  Will was all of a sudden at her side, gathering his mother's lifeless body into his arms, and then the Governor was there too, kneeling beside Lydia and whispering softly, over and over, "My darling, no.  My darling, no."

Elizabeth got up and moved to the side of the ship, the fog surrounding them thicker with gunsmoke.  She remembered the medallion clasped tightly in her hand, and looked down at it, eyes widening at what she saw. It was a gold disc, larger and thicker than a schilling, but as Elizabeth turned it over, she saw that ensigned on the back of it, were a skull and crossbow.  The symbol of the Jolly Roger.  "Pirates!" she gasped.

She looked back at her family, still weeping over Lydia's lifeless form and then back over the side of the ship.  She thought she saw something through the fog and mist, and squinted her eyes.  She tucked the medallion into the bodice of her dress, continuing to watch the shape on the horizon.  And then it came clearer into view, at first the dark wood, and then the sails, and then, at the very top, the flag with the same ensignia as on the coin.  And Elizabeth fainted dead away…

*          *          *

_1720, Port Royal_

And Elizabeth woke up with a start from her dream.  As she gasped for breath, she impatiently brushed away the tears that involuntarily brimmed in her eyes whenever she thought of the day Lydia died.  Her father had never been the same since.  No one had been the same since.

Getting out of bed, she held the candle close to her desk, removing items to get to the secret shelf that held the medallion Lydia gave her and told to keep away from anyone's sight.  Which she had, all these years.  Not hard to do, considering she hadn't even thought about it herself in months.  But now she drew it out of the desk, noting the dustfree spot where it had lain for years.  

The gold had dulled since the medallion came into Elizabeth's possession all those years ago.  She drew the chain over her neck and admired herself in the mirror.  

The day Lydia died, Elizabeth had given up all romantic notions about pirates, having seen first hand the evil they could do.  

            But in her subconscious, Elizabeth would awaken from dreams lately of pirates.  Being kidnapped by pirates, and in turn, being rescued by pirates.  Being stranded on deserted islands with pirates and doing things with pirates that were so intimate that Elizabeth would find herself blushing when she awoke from such dreams.  

            To clarify, Elizabeth wasn't dreaming of _pirates per say_…but rather one pirate, whose face was slightly blurred, though he was swarthy and handsome, with a gravelly voice, and hands like velvet when he touched her.

            Elizabeth jumped a mile when she heard her father coming up the stairs and his voice calling to her, "Elizabeth, are you decent?"

            She knocked her end table over in an effort to get to her robe.  There was no time to stash the medallion back in its hiding spot and had just gotten it hidden beneath her chemise when the door opened, and entered her father and three of her maids.  "Ah, still a-bed at this hour!"  Governor Swann clucked his tongue good-naturedly and motioned for one of the maids to open the drapes, revealing the gorgeous Caribbean summer day, and letting in the scent of the blossoms that had been Elizabeth's comfort since they moved to Port Royal.  Governor Swann turned his attentions to his beloved, yet strong-minded daughter.  "I have a gift for you."

            Elizabeth's chambermaid held out the box that was just the right size for a new gown, as Governor Swann opened it.  Elizabeth reached out and fingered the light muslin, with the delicately embroidered design.  It was beautiful, like a princess' costume.  But Elizabeth was not a princess.  Still, she pasted a smile on her face, since she did not want to hurt her father's feelings.  "It's beautiful Father, thank you."

            He patted her porcelain cheek.  "Happy birthday, my dear."

            _Ah_.  Elizabeth had forgotten her own birthday.  Her eighteenth birthday.

            "Go, try it on," her father pushed her in the direction of the screen that served as her dressing room, followed by two of her maids, as one prepared to lace up her corset.  "How does it look?"

            Elizabeth managed to gasp out, "It's too soon to tell!" as Alice and Francine pulled harder on the laces of her stay.  

            "I'm sorry, miss, but this gown requires a seventeen-inch waist," Alice said quietly in her rolling Cockney accent.

            Seventeen-inch waist!

            "I'm told that this is the latest fashion from London," the Governor's voice floated over to Elizabeth.

            _Women in London must have learned how to not breathe_.  Elizabeth thought to herself, as Alice and Francine finished and finally slipped the gown over her head.  It was a pale pink shade which went well with her big brown, doe-like eyes and soft white skin.  Elizabeth once again pasted her china-doll like smile on and stepped out to face her father.

            "Ah, stunning," the Governor kissed her forehead, and then paused, as if not sure how to proceed.  "I…I had hoped that you would wear this to the Commodore's ceremony."

            This time, Elizabeth didn't bother to hide the roll in her eyes.  Captain-soon-to-be-Commodore Norrington had been calling on Sundays for the past two years, and asking Elizabeth to cotillions and for walks and drives, and behaving so properly that it was almost maddening.  Elizabeth wished there were a proper way to tell someone to leave you alone, but her father seemed intent on presenting the two with opportunities to be alone together.  It was obvious that Norrington was getting himself in the frame of mind to ask the Governor for his daughter's hand in marriage and the Governor was getting himself in the frame of mind to accept.  Elizabeth, however, seemed to be in no frame of mind, whatsoever.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer:  I don't own any of the characters from Pirates of the Caribbean (they belong to Disney), and I don't own any of the characters from any historical reference I may or may not use (they belong to themselves).  I also do not have any affiliation with any people involved in the making of the Pirates of the Caribbean.  Basically, I own nothing.

Will Turner was never sure how to stand in the governor's house.  For that matter, he never really knew how to _be_ in the governor's house.  He lived with the man for over two years after his mother died, and the governor had seen to it that he was properly fed and clothed and educated.  But that was it.  There was no fatherly affection.  There was no sense of family.  Not without his mother.  His only saving grace in those days was Elizabeth.  She was still very much a child then, still scampering up trees after him and getting into wrestling matches.  Will knew it was much to the governor's chagrin that his stepson was Elizabeth's first choice as a companion, rather than one of his wealthy friends' daughters.  'Proper young ladies'.  And there was still a semblance of that carefree, brother-sister relationship between the two.

So Will had set out on his own when he was sixteen.  The governor had tried to get him to stay, probably out of some undying loyalty to Will's mother, but Will knew that was all it was.  Loyalty, a sense of duty.  Will also knew that he was a painful reminder for the governor of his late wife's death.  The governor had offered him a place in the navy, but Will had been wary of living his life on the sea for a long time.  So, he did what he had always wanted to do.  He became an apprentice to Mr. Brown, the blacksmith, and became an artist at making swords, and an expert fighter.  He would one day find the man who was responsible for his mother's death, and he would get his revenge. 

It was quite a scandal on the Port Royal society that the stepson of the governor had grown up to be a blacksmith.

And it was for all those reasons that Will Turner was never sure how to stand in the governor's house.  On that day, as usual, he was fidgeting with anything he could get his hands on, this particular instance being a beautifully crafted iron candelabra mounted on the wall.  Will reached up to finger the workmanship, and the first candlestick fell off into his hand with a resounding _crack_ that echoed throughout the governor's massive foyer.  Will stared dumbfoundedly at the offending object, and hearing footsteps on the stairs, he did what anyone would do in that situation.  He hid it.

"Ah, William, it's good to see you again," though his words were kind, the tone of the governor's voice was stilted, uncomfortable.

"Good day, sir.  I have your order," Will was all business.  It was always this way between them.  Laying the case he carried on the mahogany table in the foyer, he opened it and presented the governor with the special sword he had ordered weeks ago, for this very special occasion.  The governor unsheathed the sword, examining it.  Will continued, pointing out the aspects of his craftsmanship.  "The blade is folded steel.  That's gold filigree laid into the handle.   If I may?"  The governor handed the sword back to him, and watched as he balanced at the apex of the handle and the blade.  "Perfectly balanced.  The tang is nearly the full weight of the blade."  He flipped the sword and handed it back to the governor, having finished his demonstration.  Will couldn't help embellishing just a _little_.

"Will!"  Both men turned to look at the beautiful young lady descending the stairs.  Neither could believe that she was the same little girl who always had scraped elbows and challenged the boys in her class to footraces.  Her face was flushed with happiness and she now smiled her honest smile, pleased at seeing her 'big brother'.  "It's so good to see you!"

"Milord, if you don't mind, there are some papers for you to sign," Dobbs, the governor's old butler stood at the door to the study, and the governor followed him out, giving the two young people a moment alone.

"Will, I…I had a dream last night," Elizabeth began.  She had always confided everything in him.

"Well, did you dream about this?" Will asked, a mischievous glint in his eyes as he held out a small parcel for her.  With a squeal of delight and thank you, she ripped open the present.  She was still very much a child about gifts.  Inside the wrapping was a small but exquisite dagger.

"Oh, Will, it's beautiful," she said, and it was.  It was quite obviously not meant to be a weapon of war, but a pretty trinket for a woman.  Fingering the fine gold handle, she noticed that it had _ES_ engraved on it, with large looping flourishes.  Elizabeth knew he had made it especially for her.  No piece of jewelry would be more precious to her.  She flung her arms around Will's neck, laughing at the mock choking noise he made.  

"Happy birthday, Lizzy."  There was tenderness in his voice, and suddenly Elizabeth missed him so much in her everyday life.  Her childhood had been so happy, so full of fun and adventure, because of him.  As they grew older, they saw each other less and less.  Then his embrace stiffened, and Elizabeth knew her father had re-entered the room.  He backed away from her, and nodded to the governor.  "Good day, sir.  Elizabeth."

And then he was gone again, before either of them could really respond.  This troubled Elizabeth as she was helped into her father's carriage.  They had all once been a family.  Why couldn't they remain one?  "Father, why can't you and Will just get along?"

Governor Swann let out an exasperated sigh.  They had this conversation before.  "Elizabeth, he's a man now, with his own life.  He just doesn't need me pecking in it.  His business is his own."

"But Father, don't you think Lydia would have wanted us all to be a family?  If she were here-"

"If Lydia were here, things would be entirely different."  He looked his daughter in the eye.  "Everything would be different."  And Elizabeth knew she had re-opened the wound that would always be too tender to touch.  He quickly changed the subject.  "What did you two discuss while I was in my study?"

"Oh, he wished me a happy birthday.  And gave me a gift."

"A gift?  What was that?  Some confection?"

Elizabeth had to smile at how young her father still saw her.  "No, he crafted, um, a dagger," she half-swallowed the last word, hoping her father wouldn't pay it any mind.  This, of course, is a futile tactic.

"Oh, Elizabeth, you know those kinds of gifts are not appropriate for a young lady of your standing," his scolding became more serious.  "It _is_ your eighteenth birthday, you know, and most of your friends are married or at least engaged.  Some already have children.  You do want to make a successful match, don't you?"

Elizabeth gave her father the fake smile again and nodded.  Satisfied, he looked out his window, leaving Elizabeth at her thoughts for a moment.  Eighteen.  She hadn't thought of it yet, but that was the age that if 'young ladies of her standing' hadn't made 'successful matches' yet on their own, their fathers usually took over.  When Elizabeth thought of marriage, she felt short of breath.  She wasn't ready to marry, not Captain-soon-to-be-Commodore Norrington, not anyone.  She barely knew him!  And he was so _old_, at least thirty-five.  She wasn't ready to just one day, wake up and be a wife, and endure…those _things_ that a wife endures.  She couldn't imagine Norrington, or any man climbing on top of her and…

She ended her thoughts right then and there, because her stomach was beginning to get queasy.  Instead, she looked out the carriage window at the beautiful Caribbean summer day.  The sun was shining, glinting like azure diamonds on the water, and the scents of the tropical blossoms carried Elizabeth back to a calm state of mind.  She barely remembered the cold and drear of England, and was so grateful for her father for bringing her to this paradise.  

At the thought of her father, the thought also came of the decision he would soon be making, regarding the rest of her life.  She may be in a paradise, but it wasn't worth the prison that caged her.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer:  I don't own any of the characters from Pirates of the Caribbean (they belong to Disney), and I don't own any of the characters from any historical reference I may or may not use (they belong to themselves).  I also do not have any affiliation with any people involved in the making of the Pirates of the Caribbean.  Basically, I own nothing.

When a man lives by his own rules, lives for himself and by himself; that is when he is most free.

Or so Captain Jack Sparrow had told himself, every day of his life for as long as he could remember.  And freedom was more important to Jack than anything.  Having been born on the Caribbean island of Tortuga, and raised on the sea, he didn't do well on land, or on a climate where he was required to wear shoes and a shirt.  He had seen and felt the cold of England- the land his parents hailed from- and had no wish to ever return to that barren waste of an island.

Having called the Spanish Main his home for almost thirty years, Jack was an apt sailor, and could fight or cheat himself out of any situation that may arise when one is at sea.  That was why when Jack felt the slight shake in his tiny boat (really more like a dingy with a mast), he didn't panic, he just jumped the paltry five feet from the basket that passed for a crow's nest and started to bail out the leak.  A split second of futile work told him that it was a useless task, and he began to calculate how far he would have to swim, when something caught his attention.  

A weaker stomach would have turned away from the sight of the three skeletons, still decaying, that were hung from the gallows in the water.  But Jack stood, holding his hat to his heart, paying homage to his fallen comrades.  Scrawled on a sign hanging above the poor souls was, 'PIRATES!  YE BE WARNED!', spelling out in no uncertain terms how they had met their fate.

And Jack smiled to himself, even though the water in the bottom of his vessel was climbing his calves.  He grabbed the rope to take his place at the nest again, checking the compass that only he could read.  If he was right- and Jack was always right- then his puny boat had started to sink just in time.  Port Royal was just around the corner.

*          *          *

The coronation ceremony was even more boring than Elizabeth had anticipated and _far_ more humid.  Summer in the Caribbean had certainly arrived.  Elizabeth gently fanned herself, eyes cast down, parasol twirling in the other hand.  She was the picture of demure, elegant beauty.  But inside she was screaming.  She didn't even bother paying attention to the military ceremony which would transform _Captain_ Norrington to _Commodore_ Norrington, but rather tried to see if there were any particular angle that would lift the breeze to her face.  But the high stone walls of Port Royal's fort blocked any comforting wind.  Elizabeth glanced from side to side, at the women surrounding her with their bland faces, calmly waving their silk fans back and forth, back and forth, without any real hope of a breeze.

Ah, the moment they had all been waiting for had arrived.  Norrington stood stone-faced before Governor Swann, accepting the sword of the Commodore.  The Governor smiled at Elizabeth from where he stood.

*          *          *

Captain Jack Sparrow was used to being the center of attention, and rather enjoyed being in such a state, even when it made him look completely and utterly ridiculous.  His grand entrance into the harbor at Port Royal was no exception.  He stood, proud and tall at his pathetic crow's nest, as with each passing second, his pathetic schooner sank to the harbor floor.  His navigations had been _just right, and just before he would have been walking on water, he stepped from the mast to the dock in one grand gesture, slightly swaying from side to side, as he always did the first time he stepped on land in a long time._

Jack had some business that would take some attending to.  It was business that he had put off for far too long, but before he could get far down the pier, he was stopped by the harbormaster, "Hey, where you going now?  It's a schilling to drop anchor in the harbor, and I'll be needing to know your name."

Jack sighed.  It was never a good idea for a pirate to keep a written record of himself in any one place, especially those places under the crown of England.  "How about we make it _three schillings, and forget about the name?" He looked at the harbormaster square in the eye, and the harbormaster, having worked in Caribbean for a long time, decided not to argue and closed his book with a snap._

"Welcome to Port Royal, Mr. Smith."  And now Jack was free to go about his business, which he did.  The business of a pirate.  Sometimes he couldn't help his own petty thievery, and as soon as the harbormaster's back was turned, he lifted the small coinbag from his podium.

"Only takin' me change," Jack smiled to himself, as he sauntered off in search of the person he had been searching for eight years.  William Turner, Jr.

Author's note:  Hey guys, sorry it's so short this time.  It may take longer between updates now, because I started school again today (UUUGGH!), but I'll try to keep it up _at least_ once a week.  And next chapter…the long awaited meeting between Jack and Lizzy!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer:  I don't own any of the characters from Pirates of the Caribbean (they belong to Disney), and I don't own any of the characters from any historical reference I may or may not use (they belong to themselves).  I also do not have any affiliation with any people involved in the making of the Pirates of the Caribbean.  Basically, I own nothing.

The ceremony over and done with, the Governor, motioned for Elizabeth to join him and the Commodore at the head of the fort.  Elizabeth smiled sweetly, even though she felt beads of perspiration at her brow.  It was _far_ too hot.  She would have to ask her father to take her home soon, or surely she would faint…

Then Elizabeth's back stiffened.  She would _not_ faint.  She hadn't fainted since…since the day Lydia died, and she surely wouldn't faint over something as silly as a hot day…or the fact that her corset was laced tighter than it ever had in her life, and she could barely draw breath.  No, when she reached her father, she would just request that she be taken home, and then she would take a cool bath…Yes, that was a very good idea, indeed.

"Hello, Father," she smiled, and took her father's arm, then cast her eyes downward.  "Congratulations, Commodore."

"Elizabeth, there are some gentlemen here at the fort that I must discuss the next shipments from England with now, and the Commodore has graciously offered to see you home, so I will see you later on for tea," Governor Swann leaned close to his daughter, a conspiratorial gleam in his eye.  He whispered in her ear, "Perhaps you'll have a bit of good news to share with me, then?"  And he was gone before Elizabeth could protest.  

*          *          *

Jack could hear the gunshots going off from the fort, but he knew from the rhythym that they were for a military ceremony, friendly fire.  He had nothing to worry about, not yet at least, as far as his own hide went.  But finding William Turner was certain to be an easy task in a settlement as small as Port Royal, and after all, how many stepsons could the Governor have?

Yes, finding William Turner finally was certain to be easier than his next task.  He just had to see _how easy it could be._

He made his way down to the navy docks, which were surprisingly barren, probably because of the goings-on down at the fort, and in fact, there were only two redcoats down one end.  Two redcoats with soft bellies, and dim expressions, and were paying attention to anything but the two ships- one was a stunning, massive navy gunner, the other a trim and pretty smaller ship- they were supposed to be guarding.  This was going to be fun.

Now Jack could have slipped right by them, without them being any the wiser, but he had to make it fair.  He walked up in plain view, and was within distance to grab their swords, when one finally pointed his gun, "Who goes there?"

Jack looked over his shoulder, where the gun was pointed, and looked back with the first sign Port Royal would see of his famous cocky grin.  "Can I help ya, mate?"

The one who hadn't spoken yet, shorter with blond hair spoke up, "These docks are closed off to civilians."

"Ah," Jack nodded in agreement.  "Very good idea.  Can't have people poking around playing with these pretty little boats 'ere.  I'll tell ye what, if I should see any civilians, I'll inform them at once."  And he continued to walk by them, but they doubled back around him, crossing his path with their guns.  

"That means you then!  And they're _ships_, _mate."  It was Thing 1 talking again.  He was taller and far more opinionated than Thing 2._

_Thanks for that one_, Jack thought to himself.  "Let me ask you fine gentl'men a question."  He pointed to the gunner.  "With a beauty like that, that small boat seems kind of…superfluous."  _Good Jack, there's yer Word O The Day._

Thing 1 glanced over his shoulder at the two ships, comparing them.  "Well, right that the _Dauntless is the power in these seas.  But there's no ship in the Caribbean faster than the _Interceptor_."_

"I've heard of one faster," Jack paused for effect.  "Nigh uncatchable.  The _Black Pearl."_

Thing 1 burst out laughing.  "Well, there's no _real ship can catch the _Interceptor_."_

Thing 2 looked curiously at his mate.  "The _Black Pearl_ is real."

"How do _you_ know that?"

"I've seen it."

"You've seen the ship with black sails, worked by ghosts, and captained by a man more evil than the devil himself?"  Jack could tell this would go on for a while, which was precisely the moment he had been waiting for.  Unnoticed, he slipped by the redcoats, and jumped aboard the fast little ship, the _Interceptor_.  He had gotten so far as to untie the riggings, when Thing 1 and Thing 2 were waving their guns in his face again.  "Get out from there!"  Thing 1.  

_Is that _proper_ English? Jack thought to himself._

"What's your name, then?"  Thing 2, chimed in.  

"Smith," Jack replied.  "Or, Smith, if you like."

Thing 1 and Thing 2 seemed confused by this, and stared at each other for almost a full moment, then Thing 1, the loudmouth, spoke up again, "What's your purpose in Port Royal, _Mr._ Smith?"

"And no lies!"  Poor little Thing 2.  Jack decided he better tell the truth before the little man hurt himself. 

"All right, I confess," Jack said, his most apologetic look on his face.  "I plan to commandeer one of these ships, pick me up a crew in Tortuga, pillage, plunder and thieve my weasly black guts out."

"I said no lies," Thing 2 said.  It came out almost as a whine.

"I think he was telling the truth,"  Thing 1.

"You think he was telling the truth?"

Jack sighed.  This _could take all day._

*          *          *

Elizabeth now had to wait for _Commodore Norrington to be ready to leave, when she just wanted to rip off her damn corset and jump headfirst into the cool Atlantic Ocean, surrounding the walls of the fort.  She could barely breathe, but it was unladylike to hyperventilate, so it took all of Elizabeth's concentration to keep her breathing low and easy, and keep her bosom from heaving in an unseemly manner._

_Oh no, what is he doing now?_  Elizabeth thought as Norrington led her to the high peak of the wall.  She could faintly hear him talking about this or that, and accomplishments and a fine woman, but she was far too busy concentrating on keeping herself breathing.  _Just hang on, don't faint!  Don't faint, Elizabeth!  Not in front of this man and all these people!  Just nod and smile and it will all be over soon!_

Elizabeth could finally make out one word that the Commodore said.  _Marriage.  And he was looking at her expectantly.  She was beginning to see spots, her vision was growing much too light and much too dark all at the same time.  "I can't breathe," she managed to gasp out before her world went black and the last thing she remembered was the sensation of falling._

*          *          *

It was much more interesting for Jack to put the attention back on himself, rather than listen to Murtogg and Mullroy-Thing 1 and Thing 2, he learned, had names- argue all day.  So he was having a fine time of entertaining them with stories of his travels, some true, some not so true, when they all heard the tiny splash over port side.  The three had looked over just in time to see the peculiar sight that not many see everyday:  a woman falling out of the sky.

All three men ran to the side of the ship.  "The rocks!  I can't believe she missed them!"  Murtogg gasped.  Jack glanced at him.  Nervous little man.  

He turned his attentions on Mullroy.  "So you'll be saving her then?"

"I can't swim!"

Jack let out an exasperated groan, ripping off his jacket and hat and dropping his affects to the ground.  "Pride of the King's navy you are!"  And with that, he dove gracefully into the water.

*          *          *

Deep, deep, and deeper he swam, as the tiny little bit of a thing had sunk like a rock to the ocean floor.  Reaching the woman, Jack put her arms around his shoulder as he had been taught to do so long ago, and began to swim back up to the surface, but the woman fell out of his arms again.  

Bloody proper women!  Wore entirely too many clothes, and Jack worked quickly to rip off her ridiculous heavy skirts and thick bodice and petticoats.  Out of the folds of material floated a small dagger that was crafted almost like a tiara.  Jack grabbed that.  He would need it in a minute.  She was light in his arms now, almost weightless, and Jack furiously kicked his way to the surface.  He quickly got her on deck with the help of Murtogg, who cried out shrilly, "She's not breathing!"

_Of course she's not breathing_.  Jack shoved him aside, "Move!" and cut the woman's corset off her, using the dagger she had been carrying in her skirts.  As soon as the pressure was off her abdomen, her eyes flew open, and she coughed up the water she had swallowed and breathed in.  Bloody corsets.  Jack had never understood the purpose of such things.  He put his hand on her back, as she coughed up the last of it.  "S'okay, luv.  Get it all up."  She was breathing easier now and looked up into his eyes.  Hers were brown, and so large and soft, like the eyes of an angel.  They made Jack pause for a moment, but only for a moment, before his own eyes traveled the rest of her lovely form- and she did not have the body of an angel, more like the devil's temptation- but Jack's heart stopped beating when he came to see the gold medallion worn around her neck.  It couldn't be.  Could it?  "Where did you get that?" And just as he was reaching for it, his hands were caught behind his back and he was surrounded by guns.

"Elizabeth!" An older, stately man, though clearly not a military man threw his arms around the young girl that had just been in Jack's arms, and he felt an instant, though unfamiliar wave of jealousy.

But he put that aside as he felt the all-too familiar feeling of bindings being put around his wrists.  _What the bloody  hell is this about, first bloody good deed I've done in 'ow long?_

"Shoot him!"  The older man- perhaps Elizabeth's father?- called out in his high-pitched, nasal order.  And then Jack understood.  She was half-naked.  The bloody bastards thought he was raping her!

"Father, no!"  And when Jack first heard her voice, he had to get another good look at her.  He would have sworn she would have been soft-spoken, like the angel in her eyes.  But she had spirit.  She had, what Jack liked to call, _sav_.  All of the men on the dock, including Jack, looked at Elizabeth in surprise.  "Do you really intend to kill the man who saved my life?"

The older gentleman paused.  "Put your guns down."

The military officer who seemed to be in charge eyed Jack warily.  "I suppose thanks are in order."  He put his hand out to shake, and Jack warily accepted it, but regretted it immediately, when the officer with Commodore stripes on his jacket grabbed his wrist and pulled back his sleeve revealing the _P_ brand he had worn since he was fourteen.  A few gasps went up around the younger soldiers who hadn't yet seen a 'real' pirate, and even Elizabeth leaned closer to get a better look.

Swarthy and dark haired, with all manners of oddity around him including beads braided into his hair.  His eyes were dark and lined with some sort of kohl, but he didn't need it, his eyes were such a deep and fathomless black.  He was almost handsome.  And when he smiled that crooked grin, he was all too familiar to Elizabeth.  Like a memory from a dream.

"Have a little run in with the East India Trading Company, did we, Pirate?"  The Commodore pushed back Jack's sleeve farther to reveal the first tattoo he had ever gotten.  Of the setting sun over a palm tree with a sparrow flying high over it all.  "Ah, the infamous Jack Sparrow, is it?"

"_Captain_ Jack Sparrow," Jack corrected.

"Where's your ship, Captain?"

"I'm in the market," Jack was all sarcasm again, an easy tactic to evade the king's stupid navy.  "As it were."

Murtogg and Mullroy came forward with Jack's affects.  _Traitors_.  Jack shot them a murderous look, and they both backed away.  The Commodore went through them, a condescending tone in his voice.  "No extra shot or gun powder, a compass that doesn't point north," he paused to unsheathe Jack's beloved sword.  "And I half expected it to be wood.  You are, without a doubt,  the worst pirate I've ever heard of."

Now that stung, that stung deeply, but Jack couldn't let it show.  "But you have heard of me, Commodore."  The Commodore shook his head, and motioned to his officers, preparing to lead the whole party off the docks.

Elizabeth rushed in front of him, breaking free from her father, standing beside the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow.  Her instant loyalty to him had nothing to do with gratitude or girlish notions about heroism.  Her loyalty was almost out of her control, and confusing to her, but she knew she could let nothing happen to this man.  "Commodore, I really must protest.  Pirate or not, this man saved my life."

"Elizabeth, one good deed does not cancel out a life of violence," the old man was chiding her gently, and Jack finally guessed that he was her father.  And that he was the one with the real power here.

But Jack waited patiently as his wrists were shackled in front of him, then took his chance.  Thank God the girl was so close to him, she was just the right size to fit in his arms, behind his wrists.  Jack was very careful not to put the rusty metal anywhere near the graceful column of her slim white neck- just close enough to smell her and breathe in her scent, and give her a good scare.  And though she screamed, she didn't seem scared, she just seemed to scream because it was the proper thing to do.

All guns were pointed on him again, but Jack knew that wouldn't last, as the old man was already frantically shouting, "For God's sake, put your guns down!"  And the Commodore gave a final nod.  

"My affects, please,"  Jack shuffled Elizabeth and himself forward, so his hat, pistol, sword and compass could be handed off to Elizabeth.  "Slowly."

She turned to face him, a look of forced disgust on her mouth, but Jack stared into her eyes intently, and saw what was really there.  Dear little Lizzy was excited!  Jack couldn't help grinning down to her.  "If you'll be so kind, luv," he chuckled when she put his hat on his head first, taking the easy way out.  "Now if you'll be so very kind."  He grinned as she belted his gun and sword around his waist, reveling for a split second at the feel of her soft touch.

With eyes cast down, Elizabeth did the task assigned to her, trying to keep the nervous tremble out of her hand.  She had never touched more of a man than his wrist or forearm, and here she was, in a sense dressing a pirate who was a stranger, and whose heady smell of the sea and wind made her knees go weak again.  He smelled of something else too.  Something completely male and completely him, and Elizabeth did not yet know that this was to be the most significant moment of her life.

When she was through, she turned in his arms again, and he put his lips close to her ear and whispered, "Thank you, Lizzy, it is Lizzy, isn't it?"  His voice rumbled right through her body, warming her to the tips of her toes.

_Elizabeth_, but she had not the voice nor the breath to correct him as he backed away from the safety she had known all her life of her father and the king's navy.  This was happening!  She was being kidnapped by a pirate!  As terrified as she should have been, Elizabeth could not help feeling the slightest giddy.  "Thank you gentleman, Commodore.  I trust that you will all remember this day.  The day that you almost captured Captain Jack Sparrow."  And before Elizabeth knew what happened, she was out of his arms, and Jack was flying through the air on a rope, and dodging bullets, and Elizabeth held her breath, and oh…he was safe.  He was somewhere loose in Port Royal, but he was safe for the moment from death and Commodore Norrinton.

Elizabeth felt a tear slip down her cheek, and her father was immediately gathering her into his arms.  "It's going to be all right, darling.  You're safe now.  Nothing will ever happen to you." 

Her father's words resounded in her head, making one tear fall after another until she was bawling.  She should feel safe and relieved, yet all she felt was a sinking in her stomach, and the slightest pain in her chest- was it heartache- that she would never see that man, Captain Jack Sparrow, again.

Of course, as our story is not yet even begun, she was wrong.

Author's note:  so what do you guys think so far?  I've figured out that this is going to be very long, because it's going to go all the way through the movie, and probably include a lot of the deleted scenes, which are some _precious_ Jack and Lizzy moments.  And it's going to go beyond the movie, I'm not sure how I see the end for our hero and sweetheart.  But let me know what you guys think, and good luck on all your stories, too!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer:  I don't own any of the characters from Pirates of the Caribbean (they belong to Disney), and I don't own any of the characters from any historical reference I may or may not use (they belong to themselves).  I also do not have any affiliation with any people involved in the making of the Pirates of the Caribbean.  Basically, I own nothing.

Jack stayed in a wooden chicken crate in an out of the way alley for a good hour, giving the Port Royal guard a good chance to spread all over the island before he crept out of his hiding spot.  Always keeping one ear out for danger, it gave him a chance to be alone with his thoughts before he found William Turner, Jr.- and got those damn shackles off his wrists.  Having lived the past ten years by himself, on the ocean, with no one to help him usually, he seldom got a moment when he was thinking of anything but surviving- where to find his next meal, his next source of income, and the day-to-day aspects of sailing the seas by himself, on rickety little boats that he acquired from time to time.

Jack Sparrow was used to having no one.

He fended for himself, and damn to the rest of the world- but today he had performed an unselfish act, an act that was costing him precious time, and would set him back from his ultimate goal.  Still, how could he regret his present situation, when he could still remember the feel of Elizabeth's soft white skin under his hands?  When he knew the sight of her adoring doe-like eyes would be imprinted on his memory forever?  And the surge of joy that leapt through his heart when she stepped between him and the navy, her tiny frame shielding him from danger in the best way she knew how.  There had been many women in Jack's life, many beautiful, some he had cared for, but never a woman like the one he had held today, and breathed life into.  

Jack was five years old when he met his father for the first time-a good man and a good pirate- and his mother had been dead a week.  It was the soonest he could come home.  Later, when Jack was old enough to understand the mysteries that go one between a man and woman's heart, his father had told him, "You don't need years and years with one woman to feel something real.  All ye need is a moment, a sweet memory.  It's a good deal more than our lot can hope for in this life, and it'll carry ye through."  One sweet memory.  Jack felt through his breeches pocket at the dagger he had managed to hide away before the commodore and his goons got a hold of him.  _ES_.  Elizabeth Smith?  Elizabeth Stanley? He would never know.

_It'll carry ye through_, his father's words echoed in his head.  For a pirate, Jack's father was a tad bit poetic, and he had all such gems of wisdom that he passed along to his boy, put in ways that Jack would understand and remember.  He had a way of teaching his son about life, and sailing, and how a man could uphold a life of piracy and still keep his honor.  And the stars, Jack's father loved to teach his son about the stars.  How to navigate by them, and how to lie on his back and draw pictures in his head of the diamonds in the sky.  Jack still felt like he was a boy listening to his father's tales at night, when he looked up at the sky on a clear Caribbean night.

When Jack felt the familiar swell of moisture at his eyes, he knew he'd been thinking too long of Elizabeth and his father, and he needed to get on with his day.  He poked his head out of the bloody chicken crate, and fortune smiled down on Jack Sparrow since he'd stepped onto the pier in Port Royal.  Twenty yards away, he saw what appeared to be an unattended blacksmith shop.

*          *          *

When Will stepped back into the blacksmith shop, he was glad to see all as he had left it when he had started out that morning on his many errands that he was to run that day for Mr. Brown, the master blacksmith.  Will preferred to spend his day in the shop, knowing that if he wasn't there, not much would be accomplished other than Mr. Brown polishing off a bottle of rum, and if all went well, Will would hopefully come back not to find the shop going up in flames.  But there had been much business to attend to that day, starting with his visit to the Governor in the morning.  

But being out that day did give him a chance to listen to the widespread gossip of his step-sister's near-kidnapping.  Before he had really gotten a chance to panic, he heard that she was all right, and already safe at home.  Pirates on the island again.  He would keep one eye open in his sleep that night.

Will shook his head at Mr. Brown, passed out in his favorite rocking chair, with the tell-tale empty bottle still clasped tightly in his hand.  "Just as I left you," he muttered under his breath, and turned to the workbench, where he noticed a pick-axe strewn across the table in a careless manner.  Confused, Will turned his head back toward Mr. Brown.  Had the old drunk actually managed to get a little work done that morning?  Unlikely, and Will cautiously peered around the dark shop, his eyes finally coming to rest on a tri-cornered hat that was definitely not owned by Mr. Brown.

"Not just as I left you," and quick on his instincts, Will grabbed the nearest sword to him, and whirled around, coming face to face with the first pirate he had ever seen up close.

*          *          *

_Feisty little whelp_, Jack couldn't help but grin at how quickly he had manned his weapon- though of course not as quickly as Jack had.  Kid had a good amount of sav- but Jack did not have time for this today.  "Come on now, son, do you really want to be crossing blades with a pirate?"  Jack crossed in front of him slowly, daring him to make a sudden move, and jumping back when the kid lunged at him.

"You're the pirate that threatened Elizabeth today," there was a bitter overprotectiveness in his voice, and Jack wondered at what this blacksmith's ties to the rich little girl he rescued could be.  

"Ah, I barely touched her," Jack knew how to make himself sound crueler than he ever could be.  "There's still plenty left for you mate."  And the kid lunged at him again, Jack quickly avoiding the blade.  He had no desire to give this fresh-faced boy a real lesson in sword-fighting.  

But the whelp wouldn't be deterred.  Jack defended himself, barely breaking a sweat, putting up just enough of a fight to see how far this blacksmith would go.  "Ye're not 'alf bad, son.  But let's check yer footwork."  Jack slowly sidestepped to the right.  "If I go this way, then you-" the whelp was circling around Jack, matching him step for step.  But Jack had enough, and wanted his little duel to be over with.  He needed somewhere to hide before nightfall, and the sooner he found William Turner, Jr., the better.  He was already a marked man on this island.

With one final strike, Jack managed to knock his opponent's blade out of his hand.  With his famous cocky grin, he turned to go- and by instinct only managed to move out of the way before the blade sailed an inch away from his left ear, slicing into the wooden door a yard in front of him.  This whelp wasn't going to let him out of this shop alive.  Frustrated Jack, turned back and the kid was already prepared with another sword- this second still hot from the flames of the fire.  If the kid meant business, then Jack would give it to him.

The swords crashed violently, with Jack gaining the upper hand only slightly more often than the young blacksmith.  "Who makes all these swords anyway?"  He called between blows.

"I do!  And I practice with them three hours a day!"  

"You need to get yourself a girl, mate."  And Jack jumped out of harm's way again.

"I practice three hours a day, so that when I meet a pirate, I can kill him!"  The anger in this kid was going to get him in trouble.  Jack could hear the precise running outside- the sounds of a marching army.  This was the end.  Before the kid could even catch his breath, Jack switched his sword from his right hand to his left, and grabbed his pistol, aiming it at the kid's head. 

He had no intentions of ever using it, but it usually did the trick.

But the kid wouldn't move, still poised and ready to strike.

"Get out of me way."

"No, I cannot let you get away."  What was the kid's problem?  What would he get out of all this?

Jack cocked his gun back to see if it would scare him a little more.  It didn't.  "This shot was not meant for you."

*          *          *

Will thought he almost heard a plea in the pirate's voice.  Why did he look so familiar?  But then the pirate was on the ground, and Will got his biggest surprise of the day when he saw in front of him, a dull look on his face, with a broken bottle in his hand, his employer.

It was at that precise moment that the Port Royal guard, led by Commodore Norrington, stormed into Brown Blacksmith, and took custody of the unconscious man crumpled on the ground, still clasping his sword and pistol.  "Thank you for doing your civic duty, Mr. Brown," Will threw up his hands, as the old sot was congratulated.  The commodore turned to his men, a smug smile on his high and mighty face.  "Gentlemen, I trust you will all remember the day that Jack Sparrow _almost escaped."_


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer:  I don't own any of the characters from Pirates of the Caribbean (they belong to Disney), and I don't own any of the characters from any historical reference I may or may not use (they belong to themselves).  I also do not have any affiliation with any people involved in the making of the Pirates of the Caribbean.  Basically, I own nothing.

Hey guys, I made the big mistake of flying by the seat of my pants when I started writing this, and now I want to go back and change a whole lot.  I'm going to still continue with it, just as it is, and edit some previous chapters, for whoever may start reading this down the line, when it's all complete, but for those of you who have been faithfully keeping up with these chapters, I'll clarify all the changes right now.

And I _know_ it's really annoying when you think you see an update and it's just the author blabbering on for a page about her or his progress, so I'm going to update it for real tonight, after my night class, when I have a little more time on my hands.  (I promise, the next chapter's almost done any ways).

Well, the _biggest_ change is that Will and Elizabeth are brother and sister for real (as far as they know right now), but Lydia still dies in the beginning from the pirate attack on the voyage from England.  In other words, they are the ages I had them down as (Will 22, Elizabeth 18), and Lydia is both of their biological mothers.

In the first chapter with Jack in it, I said he was born in Tortuga, but I'm going to change that to England.  Jack Sparrow came from England.

Okay, maybe there aren't as many changes as I thought.  But more stuff is changing in my mind, and this will all affect the outcome of the story.

Okay, sorry to bother you guys.

-Ashleigh


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer:  I don't own any of the characters from Pirates of the Caribbean (they belong to Disney), and I don't own any of the characters from any historical reference I may or may not use (they belong to themselves).  I also do not have any affiliation with any people involved in the making of the Pirates of the Caribbean.  Basically, I own nothing.

Author's Note:  Sorry it's taken so long to update, my computer's been acting possessed for the past week.  Yeah, it sucks.  Oh, and those big changes I told you guys about last time?  Yeah, it's just Jack is from England.  Will and Elizabeth are still step-siblings, and Will's mother was the governor's maid before she married him.  Sorry, I'm an idiot.  Okay, this chapter may be kind of boring.  I know exactly what I want to do with Jack and Elizabeth, and most of it has nothing to do with the movie.  But now that I'm stuck in the movie, I don't know how to get out!  Somebody help me get out, please!  I'm drowning!

Jack had been locked in cells worse than Port Royal's military fort, and had certainly been locked up for longer.  But he had never felt quite so restless before.  Perhaps because he had never been closer to William Turner, than he was now, and though Jack had no intentions of hanging from the gallows at dawn, Jack had no idea how he would get out of this scrape.

At least he had some company, blithering idiots might they have been.  His comrades at arms were now doing their best to coax the key dog over with the scrappiest, sorriest bone they found in the corner of their cell.  Probably from some starved pirate.  

Jack had no interest in joining their efforts.  They weren't even proper pirates.  Petty thieves and con artists, and they weren't fit to be in the same cell as the likes of Captain Jack Sparrow.  Which is why it was a good thing that Jack had his own cell to effectively brood in all by his lonesome. 

He closed his eyes and thought of his ship, or rather, the ship that had been his when he was twenty-five and one of the youngest pirate captains the Caribbean had ever seen.  He could practically feel the wind on his face, smell the salt of the sea, hear the cannons blasting…

Wait, he really _did _hear the canons blasting.  "I know those guns," Jack muttered to himself as he crept towards the slit in the wall that passed as a window and the sight he saw brought a tear to his eye.  It felt like going home.  The _Black Pearl was attacking Port Royal._

*          *          *

_Elizabeth was dreaming again.  That lovely, wonderful pirate dream that had crept up in her subconscious since childhood.  Of course, the content of the dream had changed over the past year or so.  Where as a little girl she had dreamed of adventure on the high sea, she now dreamed of a deserted island, and the stars above, and one very certain man who's face was never quite clear, but Elizabeth knew it was the same man all the time.  The island was theirs, and they felt they were the only two people on earth.  _

_She now dreamed of intimate kisses for hours and hours until she woke up still feeling arousal between her legs and love swells on her lips.  There were no words in her dreams, only passion and touch and delicious, wicked feeling.  There was something different about this dream though, Elizabeth could hear her pirate prince's voice whispering soft, tender endearments, and Elizabeth cried out in ecstasy, "I love you, Jack."  And he pulled back and looked into her eyes._

_Captain Jack Sparrow._

*          *          *

Elizabeth awoke from her dream, not because of the startling revelation she had just seen and knew she would not forget, but because she had been ripped from slumber by the noises of crashes and burns and screams going on below her bedroom window.  She ran to the window and gasped at what she saw.  Port Royal, the little town that had become her home was in flames.  And this was not the kind of fire that was started when someone carelessly knocked a candle over.  Port Royal was under attack.  By pirates.

Her father was at the fort.  He had stayed late to meet with the gentlemen from England.  "Father, I must get to Father," she started down the stairs, still clad in her nightgown, with no thought for a robe, much less a dress.  One step out of her room, and she screamed when she realized that not only her town, but her _home was under attack.  Some of her father's staff was already dead.  So she did what she had been too naïve to do when she was ten.  She ran and hid._

Back to her room, shoving a chair underneath the doorknob to enforce the lock, she looked for something, _anything_ to defend herself with.  Now more than ever, she lamented Will's birthday gift sinking to the bottom of the Atlantic.  But when she heard the crashes and the splintering wood of her bedroom door, she muffled her scream and ducked into a cupboard, holding her breath.

Elizabeth could smell the pirates before she heard their voices.  Their leery, low voices that nearly oozed evil.  "We know yer here, poppet."  It was a wicked sing-song.  "The gold, it calls to us."

_The gold?__  What gold?_  Elizabeth thought to herself.  All of her father's gold flatware and valuables were downstairs.  The gold?  When Elizabeth's heart thudded again, she felt it at her chest; it suddenly turn cold.  The medallion.  Of what interest was a small coin to these pirates when they were in the richest house in Port Royal?

*          *          *

Will had not panicked when he heard the first crash and burn of the town being attacked.  Arming himself with as many weapons as he could carry, he ran out of the Brown's shop and made his way through the crowd, defending and attacking easily as he went along.  The first real opponent he'd ever had was earlier that day, and none of these mangy beasts had half the skill as Jack Sparrow.

But a certain scream stood out among the others, and when Will looked up, his heart froze in fear as from a hundred yards away, he caught the eye of his dear little sister being carried off by four of the meanest-looking thugs he had ever imagined.  And before he could run to her, the lights turned out on his world.


End file.
